The evolution of the modern farm Finally, an encyclopedia reference work covering American farm implements and farm-related antiques from the 1800s through the 1940s. Through Encyclopedia of American Farm Implements & Antiques, follow the exciting and fascinating technological advances in farm equipment that made the United States the breadbasket to the world. Thoroughly researched, this guide features nearly 2,000 rare illustrations of farm equipment - the most poplar to the most obscure - from firms such as Deere & Co., J.I. Case, Allis-Chalmers, International Harvester and McCormick. Trace the history of: Alfalfa Grinders Balers Corn Binders Corn Harvesters Cultivators Elevators Drills Hay Tools Milking Machines Plows Saws Threshers Washing Machines Plus Much More! If you have an interest in farming and history, you'll love Encyclopedia of American Farm Implements & Antiques. Not only does it identify and illustrate farm equipment, but it explains how this equipment was used and reveals many of the trials and tribulations farmers faced in using it. Also includes current price ranges for thousands of implements and antiques.

From the beginning of the twentieth century to World War II, farm wife May Lyford Davis kept a daily chronicle that today offers a window into a way of life that has all but disappeared. May and her husband Elmo lived through two decades of prosperity, the Great Depression, and two World Wars in their Midwestern farming community. Like many women of her time, Davis kept diaries that captured the everyday events of the family farm; she also kept meticulous farming accounts. In doing so, she left an extraordinary record that reflects not only her own experiences but also the history of early twentieth-century American agriculture. May and Elmo’s story, engagingly told by Carrie A. Meyer, showcases the large-scale evolution of agriculture from horses to automobiles and tractors, a surprisingly vibrant family and community life, and the business of commercial farming. Details such as what items were bought and sold, what was planted and harvested, the temperature and rainfall, births and deaths, and the direction of the wind are gathered to reveal a rich picture of a world shared by many small farmers. With sustainable and small-scale farming again on the rise in the United States, Days on the Family Farm resonates with both the profound and mundane aspects of rural life—past and present—in the Midwest.

The Aermotor Windmill Company, which commenced operations in Chicago in 1888, is the nation’s sole remaining full-time manufacturer of water-pumping machines. The company’s imprint on rural America, particularly across the West, is still visible today in the tens of thousands of its windmills that bring water to the earth’s surface. Still Turning is the first book to explore the rise of the American windmill through the experience of this important company. Aermotor founder La Verne Noyes and engineer Thomas Perry developed and perfected the all-metal wind pump in the 1880s. Within a decade, the “mathematical windmill” began to dominate the market. Aermotor continued to expand and innovate. The ruggedness and simplicity of the American mechanical windmill has allowed it to outlast many newer water-pumping technologies over the years with minimal maintenance and oversight. Christopher C. Gillis traces this story and more, from the early days of the company to Aermotor’s present-day relevance as it continues to produce its iconic windmills. Still Turning is a significant contribution not only to the history of wind power but also to the history of American enterprise.

In a modern world where technology is taking over our lives, could we lead an essential, simple life without electricity? How can we get by without computers, power tools, phones, or even basics such as electric lights and appliances? The answers lie in Amish communities and other Old Order groups in the United States, Canada, and Mexico that have been living lives off the grid while still affording to be self-sufficient for countless years. Living Without Electricity examines the Amish response to technology and shows us why and how they live without inventions other people take for granted. Taking lessons from the Amish, learn how to light a room without electricity, keep warm without centralized heating, get around without a car, communicate without a phone, and others. In addition, take Amish instruction on how to cook and store food, pump water, wash clothes, and even run farms and businesses, all while off the electric grid. Reconsider the basic necessities of your life, and you might decide to orientate yourself toward a self-sufficient life without electricity.